262 BEGINNINGS IN ANIMAL HUSBANDRY 



fatter he gets, the less water is found in the body. For 

 example, a calf a week old may consist of 60 per cent water, 

 while a fat cow four years old may be but 45 per cent water. 

 It will be fairly accurate to say that about 50 per cent of the 

 body of an animal under usual conditions is water. 



The mineral matter, or ash, in the animal is more or less 

 abundant, according to age and condition. Old animals 

 always contain more than do young ones, and fat less than 

 lean ones. Usually we find a little over three pounds of ash 

 for each 100 pounds of body weight. A fat, corn-fed hog, 

 however, may be so short of ash in the body that the bone will 

 hardly be strong enough to support its weight. The ash in 

 the animal is made of the same substances as that found 

 in plants. 



The protein of the body is to be seen in the form of 

 muscles, tendons, blood, nerves, the internal organs, hide, 

 hair, horns, etc. Lean meat with no fat on it is protein, or 

 nitrogenous material. The fatter the animal, the less the 

 percentage of protein in the body. In the entire body of a 

 farm animal under usual conditions we find about 13 or 14 

 per cent protein. In the dressed carcass, ready to be sold 

 for meat, we find about 17 per cent. 



The fat of the animal body is composed of carbon, hydro- 

 gen, and oxygen, or of the same chemical substances as the 

 fat of plants, but differing in combination. The amount 

 of fat in the body depends much on how an animal has 

 been fed. If we take a young growing pig, the body may 

 contain only 25 per cent fat, or even less, but a hog that 

 has been well fattened and is ready for the butcher may 

 contain over 40 per cent. Not often do we find less than 

 6 per cent fat in the body, or over 35 per cent. In the carcass 

 ready for cutting up in the shop, we find about 20 per cent 

 fat, under usual conditions. 



